Users of portable communication devices such as mobile phones often keep sensitive personal and financial information on their phones as a matter of convenience. However, if the phone is then accessed by an unauthorized individual, the user's private information may be comprised, at great personal or financial cost to the user. As such, it is known to password protect mobile phones and the like.
Indeed, manually entered PIN codes, fingerprint readers, and iris readers are recognized as robust authentication and security systems. However, these systems can be inconvenient to the user since they cannot be used hands-free or unobtrusively. Moreover, while audible PIN codes or passphrases are convenient, these are not robustly secure since a nearby person may be able to overhear or record the utterance and later access the device by repeating or playing back the utterance. Although the “trusted device” option in Google Android and other mobile devices operating systems can make authentication unnecessary if the primary and “trusted” device remain together, the loss of both of these devices in the same episode is not uncommon, and even an unattended device can be surreptitiously accessed when the trusted entity is within Bluetooth range but not within the user's sight.
The present disclosure is directed to a system that can eliminate or reduce some of the shortcomings noted above. However, such benefits are not limitations on the scope of the disclosed principles, or of the attached claims, except to the extent expressly noted in the claims. Additionally, the discussion of technology in this Background section is reflective of the inventors' own observations, considerations, and thoughts, and is in no way intended to accurately catalog or comprehensively summarize any prior art reference or practice. As such, the inventors expressly disclaim this Background section as admitted or assumed prior art. Moreover, the identification herein of desirable future courses of action reflects the inventors' own observations and ideas unless otherwise noted, and should not be assumed to indicate an art-recognized desirability.